Black Butler: The Stellar Dove

14.5

  Moments later, I found myself laying in my bed with a figure beside me. Chills ran all over my body, but when my vision cleared, I realized it was only the maid.

"Thank goodness you're awake," Mey-Rin said as she took the wet clothe off my forehead. "You fainted, but everything's alright now."

I didn't look her in the eye, only sat up slowly and stared blankly, thinking. This couldn't be happening. It couldn't be real.

"Estella?" she asked. "You can talk to me, or any of the other servants. We've all seen things like this before—and worse."

So I was wrong. It was real.

I shook my head. "I... it's not..."

"Will you allow me to have a moment with the young lady?" a new voice asked.

"Tanaka?" she gasped.

The old man smiled warmly. It was true that he strongly resembled Tanaka, but it wasn't quite him. This man was alert and wise. His eyes were filled with kindness instead of the glassy, emptiness that usually covered them.

"Yes. Now, if you'd please..."

Without further question, she left the room, shutting the door behind her.

"Ah, so you are Lady Estella," he said as he fixed his eyes on me. "I'm sorry that we haven't been properly introduced. My mind seems be elsewhere most of the time these days."

"It's very nice to finally meet you, Tanaka." I'm not sure how I found my voice in that instant.

"I'm afraid I don't have much time to speak to you, so I'll have to jump straight to the point. I see you have learned the Phantomhive butler's secret at last."

My eyes widened slightly at the old man's words. "Does everyone here know?"

"No, just the master and I."

He gave me a moment to think about it all. The bits and pieces about the disaster before and the butler's presence here were beginning to come together, but I didn't allow them to lock in place. I had already had enough of a shock for the night figuring out the place I was staying in was a hellhole— quite literally.

"You don't need to fear him," Tanaka told me. "Sebastian would never dare to hurt you. His humanity has been growing since the very day you met him."

I looked down. "I know that, but..." I tensed up, feeling another icy wave of chills that turned into choking tears. "I'm so afraid. I don't think you would understand. I can't be around him anymore. Not after... after what happened..."

"I do understand," Tanaka nodded slowly. "I don't expect you to simply forget this night or put the fact of what he is aside. I simply want you to remember that courage is not the absence of fear, but the strength to put something else above that fear."

I met the elder's eyes as he gave me a mysterious smile. Without saying anything else, he left the room, shutting the door securely behind him.

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